


Eyes the Colour of the Ocean

by KatieComma



Category: Hawaii Five-0 (2010)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Soulmates, M/M, Soulmate - Colors, Soulmate - Colours, Soulmate AU, This is my first Soulmate AU ever, be kind
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-09-29
Updated: 2020-03-14
Packaged: 2020-11-07 20:04:48
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 6,085
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20823038
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/KatieComma/pseuds/KatieComma
Summary: The moment Steve grabbed Danny's arm and twisted him up with that stupid ninja move, the whole world changed before their eyes. Literally.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

  * For [lavendersblues (lonely_lovebird)](https://archiveofourown.org/users/lonely_lovebird/gifts).

> From the soulmate AU prompt: the one where you only see colour once you meet your soulmate.
> 
> I may have changed it to: when you first touch your soulmate.
> 
> Thanks so much to Lavendersblues for the request!!!! <3 MUCH LOVE TO YOU M'DEAR!!!

Danny was hurting and he was pissed. He’d been shot. Sure it was just a graze, but a bullet had still passed through part of his body, and it ached. Great, another scar. Just what he needed on a body that was a mess of them already. Stupid job.

Didn’t help that he’d been shanghaied by a careless idiot who’d gotten him shot.

He watched McGarrett carry the poor girl out of the house, malnourished and with signs of restraint bruising her body. The paramedics were done with Danny, and he made way for them to lift the girl into the ambulance and take her away. 

And now that she was taken care of, Danny was seeing red. Not literally of course, because seeing anything but black, white and grey was reserved for people who were deserving of a soulmate. And Danny, was not one such person. At 30 years of age, with the baggage of a divorce (which had been the result of Rachel meeting some random guy, touching his hand, and seeing the world in colour for the first time), a beautiful little girl, and the bitterness of being dragged from one end of the country to the other by his asshole ex-wife, Danny wasn’t optimistic about his chances. So he’d stopped considering the idea of finding his soulmate, and had settled in for a life of protecting his daughter and just getting through.

And now Danny was pissed, because protecting his daughter wouldn’t happen if he was dead. And that’s exactly what Steve McGarrett had almost caused.

He called it seeing red, despite not knowing what the colour red actually looked like, because when he got mad enough, his vision got a little fuzzy around the edges, and he would swear just for a little bit that some colour seeped in. Maybe anger was his soulmate.

And right now, Danny’s vision was fuzzy and he could swear that ripples of colour were coming through. He walked up to McGarrett, and decided, benevolently, to give the guy a shot before he let his anger out.

He let McGarrett go on and on about the chain of trafficking this girl has gone through. And while, yes, it was terrible and tragic, she was now saved and on her way to a hospital. And Danny was still standing in front of Steve with a slice out of his arm. And his vision swam a little more.

As soon as there was a break in McGarrett’s train of thought, Danny broke in.

“Uh, excuse me, I’m sorry,” Danny didn’t actually sound sorry, “this is typically where you would say thank you for saving your life.” He started to move his hands around in typical Jersey style, punctuating his words with movement.

“You just shot my only lead!” McGarrett accused, before turning away in frustration.

Man, this guy.

“Are you kidding me?” Danny asked, and then repeated himself, more anger surging to the surface: “Are you kidding me!?”

McGarrett took a few steps away, still working on the case, and talking aloud. Danny followed. He wanted an apology, a thank you, any kind of acknowledgement.

The next words out of Danny’s mouth were loud, his voice raised, his anger bubbling right at the edge, ready to spill over. “You just took a stupid risk, ok? Understand that!” He huffed, like a dragon, ready to breathe fire. “I am not getting myself killed for your vendetta. I have a daughter, ok?” His hands were full on waving around now, pointing at McGarrett, pointing somewhere in the distance to vaguely indicate Grace’s presence in the world, and then back to Commander stupid McGarrett again.

McGarrett interrupted with, to be fair, a good point. “Yeah, that girl there is someone’s daughter too.” He pointed after the ambulance, sounding like a condescending hero.

“You don’t get it,” Danny said, letting his anger keep coming up, “you don’t get it! You know for someone who just lost his father, you’re pretty dense.”

The first words out of McGarrett were cold. “What did you say?” And then his face twitched into flushed anger, and Danny knew he’d hit the button, and he was ready for this fight that had been brewing since the first moment they’d laid eyes on each other. “What did you just say to me?” McGarrett yelled, stepping into Danny’s space, and using all of his military training to be intimidating. And then he changed tact again, shifting the subject away from his father. “What if she was yours huh? Is there anything that you would not do to hunt down the son of a bitch that did that to her?”

Danny’s anger simmered and turned so hot that he went still, then he stepped forward and stuck his finger in McGarrett’s face. “Do not. Question. My. Resolve.” Each word punctuated with a sharp jab of his finger toward Steve’s face.

McGarrett smiled. The asshole actually smiled. “One warning: take your finger out of my face,” he huffed a little laugh.

And that little laugh is what sent Danny over the edge. “Listen to me you son of a bitch-” And he jabbed McGarrett hard in the shoulder with his finger.

And before Danny knew what was happening he’d been spun around, his arm shooting with pain where it was locked by one of this Army guy’s super secret ninja moves. And he knew he was really angry now, cause he got a little light headed and dizzy for a moment before he really did start to see colours swimming before his eyes. The whole world lit up around him. The dirt was brown, the grass green, the lights from the police cars flashing colours into the air instead of just bolts of brightness. And that was it, Danny had finally gotten so angry that his body had flipped its lid.

“What’d I tell you?” McGarrett asked from behind and above him, holding Danny’s wrist tight in his warm hand. “I warned you… in front of all these nice people.”

And then Danny saw the shoes of the officers approaching them, and their pants were a deep, dark, beautiful blue.

“It’s fine,” McGarrett said to them as he looked up to warn them back, and then McGarrett’s voice faded when he repeated himself. “It’s fine…” And then he let Danny’s hand drop, and took a few steps back.

Danny turned and marvelled when the colours didn’t fade. All behind McGarrett there was lush jungle that was so bright green it almost hurt his eyes. After 30 years of black, white, and grey, it was an overload to the senses.

And then he met McGarrett’s eyes. And they were this amazing colour that he didn’t have a name for yet, because he had nothing to compare it to. But there it was, this brilliant and wonderful colour that he couldn’t stop looking at. 

“You…” McGarrett said softly.

And then Danny realized what was happening. And his instincts kicked in, the anger and adrenaline still boiling through his veins, his arm still sore from where it had been twisted, his other arm aching from where he'd been shot, and he hauled off and punched McGarrett right in the jaw. Those perfect, beautiful eyes went wide for a moment before the hit landed, and then his head was turned away.

Danny turned around and walked back to his car. “This day can absolutely go to hell!” He yelled.

“Son of a-” He heard Steve breathe out behind him before Danny was out of earshot.

Steve watched Danny walk away, back toward the car, through the bright blinking lights of the cop cars. Two colours alternating. With no reference, he wondered which was the red and which the blue, since he’d never seen them in colour before.

Danny. Detective Danny Williams found out Steve was his soulmate, and the first thing he did was punch him in the face.

His whole life Steve had wondered if soulmates were a myth. If the world was playing a big prank on him. He’d dated a lot of men and women over the years and never had a spark of colour in his life. He was starting to think he would be one of the millions who would never meet their soulmate and die in black and white. And now here he stood surrounded by colour. He looked around at the greenery and wanted to cry for how beautiful it was.

He absently wiped his hand across his mouth and looked down to see a smear of blood from the excellent right hook Danny had planted on him. Red. He glanced up at the flashing lights, and now he knew which one was red and which one was blue. Blue like the shirt he was wearing. Red like the house he stood next to. Blue like the sky hanging overhead, clear of clouds. 

The world was glorious and beautiful. All because of Danny Williams. Who had realized he belonged to Steve, or that Steve belonged to him… and had punched Steve in the face.

Steve sighed. He had a hard road ahead, but he’d been longing for his soulmate his whole life and he wasn’t going to let it pass him by. He wasn’t going to walk the world seeing colour without that person by his side to share it with him.

He was a Navy SEAL, and a well decorated one at that. He'd hunted down terrorists and really awful and skilled people. He could handle Danny Williams.

And anyway, they still had a case to solve. Bad people in the world to stop, his father’s death to avenge, and other good people to help and save. So Steve tried not to be overwhelmed by the new colourful world around him and walked back to the car.

He was surprised Danny hadn’t left without him, and he climbed into the passenger seat, careful not to wipe the smear of blood from his hand onto the upholstery as he did up his seatbelt.

Danny immediately drove away, throwing up a little dirt as he floored the gas.

They drove in silence for a while, both of them staring at the scenery around them, the way the colours changed, the occasionally brightly coloured car almost making his eyes sore. It was magnificent and he was surprised Danny could drive at all. Once they were back on the highway, Steve decided to break the quiet.

“How’s the arm?” He asked, trying not to sound as nervous as he felt. It was like starting over again, trying to make a good impression despite the fact they’d gotten off on the wrong foot. He swallowed heavily.

“Let’s just not talk,” Danny said simply.

“You mean…” Steve tried not to sound disappointed, but it leaked out in his tone anyway. “Right now, or ever again?”

Danny didn’t even glance at him, just looked out the window. “Just… both, ok?” He was still angry.

And Steve wasn’t over the moon either. He hadn’t expected his soulmate to be someone he butted heads with right away and had to share authority with. He’d expected something more romantic than that. But that didn’t mean he was going to give up on it entirely, despite the fact that Danny seemed to be doing just that.

And now Steve was getting mad too. How could Danny let himself by the one to make that decision all by himself? He found out he had a soulmate, and just decided that they wouldn’t even try? Wouldn’t give it a go? That wasn’t just his choice, it was something to talk about. And now Danny was saying he didn’t want to talk at all.

Steve let his angry monster out for a moment. “You know,” he said, looking out at the greenery rushing by, “I think I know why your wife left you.” He regretted it almost immediately, but Steve was never one to admit his regrets.

“Really?!” Danny asked, finally turned toward Steve, even shifting his body to turn in his seat. There was anger in his tone, but Steve got the impression that Danny had spent a lot of time angry over the last few years. Maybe he could change that.

“Yeah, you’re very sensitive,” Steve answered. He grinned a little to let Danny know it was a joke.

“I’m sensitive?” Danny said, and his face lit up in a mock smile, and Steve wondered what it would look like when Danny actually smiled. “When did you come to the conclusion that I was sensitive?” He asked, and his grin faded and he got angry again, like it was his default setting. “Was it when a bullet was tearing through my flesh? Is that when I seemed sensitive to you?” His loud words bounced around the car.

Steve didn’t answer, but Danny was equally sharing his gaze with the road and Steve, and Steve was drawn into the pale beautiful blue of his eyes. And then he started to wonder what happened to this man in front of him? How much damage had the people in his life done to him? Could Steve repair it? He wanted to, god he wanted to. He wondered what it would take to make Danny Williams smile for real, and suddenly felt determined to make it happen.

Danny was ranting, and even though the words were angry, Steve loved the sound, even if he wasn't listening to all the words.

And when his voice reached peak, Steve stopped being distracted by those beautiful eyes and started concentrating on what this man, his new partner, his soulmate, was saying.

“Rule number one!” Danny yelled. “If you get someone shot, you apologize!”

“I’m sorry,” Steve said simply.

“You don’t wait for a special occasion,” Danny continued as though Steve hadn’t offered up the apology already.

“I’m sorry,” Steve said again, louder.

“Like birthdays, or friggen President’s Day, or the day you find your soulmate…”

And there it was, hanging between them. They hadn’t said anything about it so far. Not one word mentioned. And now it hung between them in the silence of the car.

“Look man, I said I’m sorry,” Steve said earnestly. “I’m sincerely sorry.” Never one to back down from a fight, even with his soulmate, he tacked on: “That’s what I was trying to tell you last year, when this conversation started.”

Danny looked over at Steve, their eyes meeting, but before long he had to look back at the road.

Steve was about to broach the topic, maybe suggest they talk when they were finished their investigation, but then the trees on the left grew sparse and Steve saw the ocean for the first time in all its glorious splendour.

“Take the next left,” he choked out, leaning toward Danny so he could see better through the driver’s side window.

“What? We’re in the middle of-”

“Take the next left Danny,” and he let all of the emotion show in his voice.

Danny did as instructed and followed a little dirt path down through a neighbourhood to a small little beach.

Before the car was even stopped, Steve jumped out and bolted for the sand.

“You animal, what are you doing?” He vaguely heard Danny call out from behind him.

Steve didn’t care, because there in front of him was the most beautiful sight he’d ever seen; beautiful blue ocean stretched out in every direction, sparkling with light. His ocean. Even the sand was a sight to behold: little golden beads that made up this wondrous sight.

Steve fell to his knees and plunged his hands into the sand, and it shouldn’t have felt different, but for some reason it did. Colour was changing his whole world: sight, smell and sound. Because the waves crashing on the shore even sounded different when he could see their true colour.

A few tears came down Steve’s cheeks. And he heard Danny tromping through the sand behind him until he stood next to him. Steve didn’t wipe the tears away. If you couldn’t be honest with your soulmate? Who could you be honest with?

Danny walked across the uneven, awful sand that was probably leaking into his shoes, stood next to Steve and looked down. The guy’s hands were deep in the beach, fingers working through handfuls and handfuls of sand.

“Steve?” He asked softly. “Steve, are you ok?” He was fully aware that it was his “Grace voice,” but it seemed like Steve could use a little bit of a soft touch. Danny knelt in the sand, not too close, he didn’t want to give the wrong impression.

It was such a strange thing to witness: this stupid over-confident badass SEAL, who sauntered around like he owned the damn island, falling apart over a beach. Danny wasn’t an idiot. Seeing colour for the first time was overwhelming and amazing, but he wasn’t falling apart over the whole thing. Not to mention the fact that he was still trying to figure out what to do with the information that Steve was his soulmate.

Steve looked over at Danny and smiled before he looked back to the sea. “I lived a lot of my life on this island,” he said, “I surfed and I played at the beach, and I looked out over the ocean. And it was always monotone. Amazing, but monotone. I just…” He laughed a little, giddy. “I never thought it would be this beautiful Danny. I wanted this my whole life. I dreamed about seeing it this way my whole life, but I never thought…” He turned toward Danny; turned away from his first time seeing the ocean in colour, a sight so beautiful it was making him cry, and looked at Danny instead.

Danny realized now how to place the colour in Steve’s eyes, it was the blue of the ocean just twenty feet away. Without even thinking about what he was doing, he reached out and wiped the tears from Steve’s face, holding his cheek for a moment. The beginnings of some five o’clock shadow tugged at his palm. And then his mouth started talking without permission. “It’s the same,” he said softly, almost in awe.

“The same?” Steve asked, brows drawn in confusion, not shying away from Danny’s touch.

Danny shook himself and realized he was touching Steve’s face. He pulled his hand away, but he couldn’t look away. “Your eyes… it’s the same.”

“The same as what, Danny?” Steve asked. And man, how did he say Danny’s name like he’d been saying it for years? Like Danny had been hearing it for years?

“The same as the ocean,” Danny replied, still staring deep and mesmerized.

Steve’s eyes widened, pupils contracting in the sunlight, which let Danny see even more of the beautiful iris. It was predominantly blue, but there were other colours speckled throughout, and at his core he just couldn’t wait to learn the names of all those colours.

A group of kids came crashing down the sand behind them, surfboards in hand, breaking the spell between them.

“Ok, let’s get you up,” Danny said, losing his “Grace voice” but not letting his anger come back either. “Can’t let you sit out here and bawl your eyes out watching the ocean all day.” He stood up, brushed the sand from his pants, and offered Steve a hand. “It’ll ruin your big scary Army guy reputation.”

Steve looked up at Danny, took his hand, and let himself be pulled to his feet. “It’s the Navy Danny,” he chided with a grin. “The Navy, not the Army.”

Danny smiled back, and it felt so good. A genuine smile, and the muscles hurt, like his face hadn’t done it in a while. He smiled for Grace, yes, but this was different. “Yeah, yeah,” he replied. “Army, Navy, big difference.”

Danny took a step back toward the car, but Steve was staring out at the ocean again.

Danny reached out a grabbed his shirt, tugging a little. “C’mon babe,” he said, the Jersey term of affection slipping out of him before he could bite it back. “We still got a bit of a time-sensitive case to finish up, and then we’ve got some talking to do.”

Steve staggered back a little and looked at Danny again. “Come on Danno,” he said with a mischievous grin. “Even you’ve gotta admit it’s beautiful. Just take a minute. We can spare a minute. Just take it in man.”

Danny looked around, and turned back toward the tree line behind them. Steve wasn’t wrong. The colour of the flowers, so bright he thought they might make him blind, and then that comforting blue at the meeting of sea and sky when he turned back to the beach again. Danny hadn’t seen so much beauty in his whole life… except… 

Grace! He needed to see the colour of her eyes, her hair, to see his little girl in colour for the first time. He wanted to jump in his car and race over to her school so he could do just that. And then he thought about the way Steve had told him to turn off the highway. The need in his voice when he told Danny to look at the ocean. And suddenly he understood Steve just a little bit. And Hawaii didn’t seem like such a bad place after all, cause he doubted New Jersey would burst with colour the way the island did.

Steve’s phone broke the silence. He cleared his throat and drew it from his pocket. “McGarrett.” Before he was even done the phone call he was walking back toward the car, Danny following in his wake, glancing back at the warm yellow sun bouncing off the blue ocean.

Steve hung up and took once last look at the beach before he climbed into the passenger seat. Danny sat in the driver’s seat and started the car, but he didn’t throw it into drive. Instead he sat back and turned to Steve.

“Let’s get a few things straight,” Danny said.

Steve didn’t answer, just looked expectant.

“One: let’s be professional and make it through this case without any mention of this soulmate business to anybody.”

Steve opened his mouth to reply, but Danny cut him off.

“No. No! Not a word! We’re gonna figure this thing out between us first,” Danny replied.

Steve shrugged and smiled.

“Two: the second, the very second we are done with this case we are going to see my daughter. My badge may come in handy for all the speeding tickets I will need to get out of on my way there.”

Steve nodded, his eyes a little sober as though he hadn’t even thought of that. And why would he? Not having a kid of his own. Not that Danny knew about anyway. Oh man they had a lot to talk about.

“And three: don’t call me Danno,” he said, “it’s between me and my daughter. It is a father daughter thing. So just… leave it. Ok? You think you can handle all that?”

Steve smiled wide and obnoxious. “You got it Danno.”

Danny shook his head, threw the car into drive, and tried to look frustrated but he couldn’t keep the smile from his face. The one that hurt his cheeks. The smile he’d already started to think of as his “Steve smile.”


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The case is done, and Danny rushes to see Grace.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A comment from Diazyanbon on the first chapter reminded me that I wrote a second chapter and never posted it! So thank you!!!

The very second that Danny had Hesse’s goon shoved into the back of an HPD cruiser he bolted for his car, only to remember the squad car they’d come in was undriveable, due to some psycho Navy SEAL driving it onto the freighter.

Danny grunted in frustration and turned in a circle.

“What’s up Danny?” Steve's voice found him over the hubbub of officers running around, and cars coming and going.

“Coast guard is on the search for Hesse. This idiot,” Danny pointed to the back of the squad car, “is booked. And now I just wanna go see Gracie. I gotta see Gracie Steve. And I’ve got no car.”

Steve’s eyes widened. “Oh, right, of course.” He looked around at the cops milling on the pier. “Hey, can you guys give us a lift back to HPD?” He turned back to Danny and set a reassuring hand on his shoulder. “It’s alright, we’ll grab your car and go.”

The drive back to HPD took too long, Danny fidgeting and bouncing his knee in the back seat. He practically ran to the Camaro in the lot, Steve jogging along behind. The sun was setting, day getting dark around them.

“Hold up Danny,” Steve said, reaching the driver’s door first and blocking it.

“Get out of my way,” Danny pushed. “I’m going.”

“Yeah, I know,” Steve replied, “but you’re not driving. Let me drive. You’re a little worked up right now. Wanna make sure you get there in one piece, right?” His voice was soft and soothing, and Danny looked into those big stupid blue doe-eyes and gave in immediately.

“Yeah, you’re probably right,” Danny conceded, “just… no Sunday driving alright?” He handed the keys over and rushed around to the passenger side. “And don’t get used to it. This is still my car.”

“You got it Danno,” Steve said, climbing into the car with a huge grin on his face.

The drive to Rachel's was almost more painful than the drive back to HPD, despite Steve’s reckless driving and heavy foot. Danny had never been so nervous about anything in his entire life.

Just before they arrived, Steve made a good point. “Did you call Rachel?” He asked. “To let her know you were coming?”

“Damnit,” Danny dug his phone out of his pocket. “That would have made way too much sense.” He dialled the number quickly. Rachel picked up on the second ring, her soft accented voice drifted casually over the line because she didn’t know the world had just changed drastically for Danny. “Hey Rachel. I’m coming by.”

“When?” She asked.

“Right now, I’m almost there.”

“Daniel, it’s late, and we’re just getting ready-”

“Colours Rachel,” he said softly. He didn’t want to admit it to her. Didn’t want her to know before Grace. It felt like a betrayal to Grace to share it with Rachel first. “I got my colours.” He glanced over at Steve who was putting way too much effort into keeping his eyes on the road, but couldn’t keep the grin from his lips.

“What?” T shock in her voice changed to excitement with her next words. “Oh my god Danny that’s-”

“Keep it down. Could you keep it down please?” Danny asked. “I want it to be a surprise. Can you let me just have this, please?”

“Of course Daniel,” the cool respectfulness was back.

“We’re just pulling up now,” he said as Steve pulled up to the gate.

There was a beeping sound on the other end and the gate swung open.

“See you shortly,” she said.

Steve pulled the Camaro up right to the front steps. Danny barely waited for the car to stop before he jumped out and ran up the steps. The door was already open, spilling warm light into the darkening night

“Danno!” Gracie’s soft little voice met him as she rushed out onto the step and pulled him into a hug.

“Hey monkey!” He greeted her softly. He knelt and pushed her back a little to look into her face, but it was too dark out on the step. “Let’s get a good look at you inside, huh?”

Grace took his hand and led him through the front door and into the warm light of the hallway. He knelt again and looked into her beautiful brown eyes. They were deep and warm. Her cheeks were blushed a bright pink with excitement, and her hair fell straight and brown around her shoulders. A few tears fell from his eyes.

“Danno?” Grace asked uncertainly. “Are you ok?”

“I’m perfect monkey, I’m just perfect,” he said, pulling her into a hug again.

“But you’re crying,” she protested, never one to back down.

“Good tears, I promise,” he said, “I’m happy that’s all.” He looked up to see Rachel standing nearby, her dark eyes a deep brown now, he could see that. She looked happy for him, arms folded as she leaned in the hallway, giving him space with Grace, a knowing smile plumping her cheeks. Of course she understood, she’d gone through the same thing when she’d met Stan.

Danny pulled back and looked into his daughter’s beautiful deep brown eyes again. “I’m really happy because…” he paused. It was a conversation he’d never planned for, never thought he’d have. “I got my colours today Gracie.”

“You did?” Her face lit up like fireworks, eyes sparkling, smile growing wide and toothy. She threw her arms around his neck and pulled him into another hug, almost strangling him. And then she pulled back and started babbling questions. “How did it feel? Was it weird? Did it hurt? What does it look like? What’s your favourite colour?”

“Grace, Grace,” Rachel came up behind, still staying back. “I think that’s enough questions for tonight. You can ask your father all these things when you stay with him this weekend, ok?” She reached out as though to put her hands on Grace’s shoulders, but retreated again instead, giving them space.

“I promise I will monkey,” Danny said, “I’ll answer every single question. You write them all down and we’ll go over every single one, ok?”

Grace nodded. “I’m so happy for you Danno,” she said as she hugged him tight again. And then quieter for only him to hear: “does that mean I’m going to have a step _mom_ now too?”

Danny pushed her back. “Well, not exactly. We haven’t totally… worked it out yet,” he said, “but I want you to meet…” He looked behind him in the entryway, expecting Steve to be there, lingering. But he was nowhere in sight.

Steve had watched Danny leap out of the car like they were in a firefight, and run into the house. Steve had turned off the engine, and stepped outside, wanting to follow. But this wasn’t Steve’s moment. Instead, he leaned against the hood and waited. 

His shoulder ached and he felt bruised all over; he knew he needed medical attention, but he’d been through worse. This was more important. He’d wait all night for Danny to be done with Grace if he had to.

It wasn’t ten minutes before Danny appeared in the doorway.

“Hey you neanderthal, what are you doing out there?” He asked. It was phrased like frustration, but came out affectionate.

“Just… watching the car,” Steve said with a grin. “Can’t trust anyone in this neighbourhood.”

Danny hopped down the steps, but the door was still open behind him. “Don’t I know it,” he said, “the people in this neighbourhood are absolutely the scum of humanity. But there is one person I’d like you to meet.” He grabbed Steve’s hand.

Steve felt a blush creep from his neck up into his face. He resisted the urge to curl his fingers into Danny’s, unsure exactly how far to push. He let Danny lead him up the steps and into the beautiful mansion. The front hall was wide and tiled, lit by a big chandelier.

Standing right in the middle was a little girl in pink pyjamas. Off to the side stood a woman who was beautiful in a round soft curves kind of way, wearing a silky blouse and skirt. Danny’s ex most likely.

“Grace,” Danny addressed the little girl as they drew close, “I’d like you to meet Steve.”

Steve knelt. He’d never felt comfortable around kids, but Grace seemed different. She felt familiar already, like he’d known her since she was born. “Hi Grace, I’m Steve and-”

Grace squinted at him appraisingly and cut him off. “You and Danno are soulmates?”

Steve nodded.

“Are you sure?” She asked.

“Pretty sure,” Steve huffed with a nervous laugh. “We both got our colours at the same time.”

She nodded as though it were an unfortunate fact. Steve looked to Danny for some help, but Danny shrugged, looking as unsure as Steve felt.

“Well then it’s settled,” she said, “if you’re soulmates you have to love each other. That’s how it goes.”

“Well I…” Steve wasn’t sure exactly what to say.

“Danno said you haven’t figured it out yet,” she replied. “What’s there to figure out? You’re soulmates. Now you get married, and I get a Step-Steve.”

“Gracie that’s-” Rachel spoke up from behind her daughter, her voice warm and pleasantly accented. English.

“Sometimes it’s more complicated monkey,” Danny cut Rachel off, taking the conversation back into his hands. He knelt next to Steve.

“No, it’s not!” She protested. “Soulmates love each other. That’s how it is. Happily Ever After.” She crossed her arms and her stance was just like Danny’s.

“Monkey…” Danny started, wavering like he was unsure what to say next.

“You’re right Grace,” Steve said with firm authority. “That’s exactly how it works.”

Danny looked over with narrowed eyes, and Rachel took another step toward them.

But Steve wasn’t done. “But you know, me and Danno only just met today,” he said, “and… soulmates or not, we need to get to know each other before we make any promises.”

Grace didn’t look convinced.

“But I don’t think it’ll be a problem,” Steve added with a wink.

Danny sighed heavily, but there was a smile playing around his lips.

Grace’s face split wide into a grin. “I think I’d like a Step-Steve,” she said tentatively, looking at Danny.

Steve felt his smile widen. This little girl that somehow already felt like his own; beautiful and smart and driven and stubborn, and he wanted to hug her and tell her everything would be alright. He wanted so badly to be her Step-Steve.

“Danny,” Rachel interrupted again, and the moment between Steve and Danny and Grace shattered like a dropped plate in the silence of the echoey mansion. “I think it’s best if we call it a night. There’s school in the morning.”

Danny nodded. “Of course,” he said. “Thanks for staying up late for me monkey.”

“I could stay up later!” Grace said.

Danny pulled her into a hug, looking for all the world like he never wanted to let go. “Not tonight monkey. Maybe when we’re together on the weekend, ok?”

“Ok,” she said glumly.

Danny and Steve stood up together, as though they’d planned it. Steve couldn’t help but smile at the mirrored action.

“What do I call you until you’re Step-Steve?” Grace asked.

“How about Uncle Steve,” he suggested.

“Uncle Steve,” Grace tried it out and nodded. “I can do that.”

Danny and Steve turned to go, but Grace spoke up again.

“Uncle Steve?”

“Yeah Gracie?” Steve asked, the nickname falling off his tongue like he’d been saying it for years.

“Can I have a hug?”

Steve’s heart soared. He’d never imagined that getting a soulmate would mean gaining a family. Even if he had he could have never imagined a little girl as perfect as Grace being part of the deal.

“Of course,” Steve said, feeling joy surge through him as he knelt, taking Grace into his arms.

She felt so fragile, and yet she gripped him tightly, arms wrapped around his shoulders. Something twinged in his left shoulder, an injury from their fight that day. Steve felt the pain flicker through his expression before he stilled it again. It was worth the pain.

Grace finally let go and looked up at Danny. “He’s a keeper,” she said simply before she turned and walked back to her mother.

Steve stood up and walked outside with Danny. They closed the door tightly behind them.

“What was that?” Danny asked casually as they walked down the steps.

“What was what?” Steve played along.

“That look on your face, when Grace hugged you,” Danny said, stopping at the driver’s side door of the car. “Are you hurt?”

“Little banged up,” Steve said, “no big deal. You do remember us being in a big gun fight on a freighter? Just a few scrapes and bruises.”

Danny reached out and very deftly twisted at Steve’s bicep, causing him to let out a little grunt of pain. “Why didn’t you say anything you idiot?” Danny’s voice got loud as he let go.

Steve met his eyes, those perfect sky-blue eyes, tossed him the keys and said: “this was more important.”


End file.
